A social network has been described as a social structure of relationships or bonds between individuals, and/or groups of individuals, such as societies. The social structure can be said to be made of individuals (or organizations) called “nodes,” which are connected, or related, in some manner.
The social structure can be expressed using conventional network terms, such as nodes and edges, where nodes are entities, such as individuals, groups, etc., and edges, or ties, represent relationships between entities. Social networks can operate on many levels, such as familial, organizational, community, geographical, national, etc. Social networks can be quite complex, and analysis of a social network, or networks, can consume considerable computational resources.